Just in case you thought that my life had become all about
lumber and cutting and the joining thereof, you should know
that I have been braiding as well. Here are the latest four
braids I've braided, some of them being experiments in material
to make interesting examples for a class in braiding I am
teaching this Saturday at the
Mi-no-Hi
festival. (I did the web pages for that event, too.)

Black and Gold Silk

I started this braid just after the superbowl,
and it took me a few weeks to get it completed.
It's over eight feet long and done in the
Hira Kara Gumi style, which is a slow-going braid for me.
I've now completed two of the 37 possible HKG two-color patterns.

Extended Sampler in Combed Silk

I couldn't find my original sampler of the patterns in
Jacqui Carey's Beginners Guide to Braiding,
so I made a new, longer one to show during my class.
The sections are about 12 inches long instead of about 4
inches long on the first one. I had enough yarn on the
bobbins to add a section of Yatsu Rai and a section of
a braid I came up with
(I call it "Long Spiral")
to the end of the sampler.

Rope and Yarn Together

I was wondering how well this 40-pound test nylon line would braid.
It, like the rat-tail cord, only worked well in the
Kusari Kaku Yatsu "square braid".
You can see how it pushed the polyester yarn off to the sides,
making it more like a flat braid instead of a square.
It's reasonably attractive, but its main purpose is to have
an approximate test weight capable of holding my weight,
in case I ever need a braid to save my life. &smirk;

Yarn with a Rope Core

Slighly more decorative, this braid uses the Edo Yatsu
eight-strand braid, which is hollow. I ran a length of nylon rope
down the center, which makes this braid stronger than mere yarn,
but the rope is completely hidden.